Tag Archives: Myrtle Beach

One of the best things about a beach vacation is eating seafood. I love just about all of it, especially fresh catches of a local delicacy, expertly prepared with a new idea for flavor. At one restaurant, I enjoyed a starter salad, with flavorful home grown tomatoes and creamy mozzarella, lightly dressed with a balsamic vinaigrette. Yum!

I particularly love oysters (Oysters!!), and the best I found all week were these marvelous tidbits. They were fried to perfection, not greasy, and fresh! I dove into them so fast I almost forgot to take a pic, LOL.

The restaurant, Bimini’s, was a hole in the wall with a thirty minute wait for a table in the northern part of the town. Obviously a spot locals know well! After dinner we went to their store next door and got a wall sign for DH’s garage, that says “No Bad Days” with the parrot logo, and a t-shirt for me with the parrot on the back.

The oysters were great with a Blue Margarita, made with the usual ingredients topped with a splash of Blue Curacao.

The hush puppies were light and crispy, well seasoned little treats.

Our best meal of the week was at Sea Captain’s House.

It was a charming place with a homey atmosphere in the lobby waiting area. I believe it was a large home converted to a restaurant. There were three dining areas, two on the upper level and one below on an enclosed porch.

We ate upstairs, with this beautiful view around sunset.

The small garden could also be seen from our table through the window.

DH had a fresh catch selection, a tuna filet with two interesting sauces – one a tropical salsa, and the other an orange habanero.

I had the sea bass with lemon dill and basil cream sauces. The colorful squash side dish was perfectly cooked. I have some new ideas for home meals now too!

I have these little side dipping dishes that have three compartments. I used them in my Late Summer Cookout dinner.

So what can I use with a homemade fish dinner? Maybe the teriyaki again, and I think horseradish sauce goes with anything. Cocktail and tartar sauces could be nice too. I have an idea for a new sauce (inspired by this trip), but I will have to try it before I tell you all about it in case it isn’t as good as it sounds in my head, LOL!!! Now, to find some fish or shrimp on sale to grill out!

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In between all the shopping and quilting and walking at the gardens, I did get some time on the beach in Myrtle Beach. DH and I walked along the shore a couple of evenings, watching the birds and the waves. The nice thing about this area is that it isn’t wall to wall people. There are visitors but it isn’t crowded.

These pictures were taken in the state park on the shoreline. It was evening, after DH had finished his work for the day, so the light isn’t the best. Remember, we are on the east coast where the prettiest pictures are at dawn. This time we were not staying at a beach hotel so I couldn’t get the sun over the water.

Seagulls vied with pigeons for tidbits on the beach.

This little guy wasn’t afraid of us, but decided to scratch his nose when I decided to take his picture.

We walked out on the pier where people were fishing. It was lovely looking back at the shore. DH used to spend some time in the summer camping in this park when he was a kid. He had lots of memories of the fun they had.

Looking down into the water, I saw a sea turtle but didn’t get the camera out fast enough. A minute later, I did get a picture of a shark. It is under the water in the upper right of the photo.

Sunset was over the land, and the clouds made an interesting view.

On another day, I went to the beach in the middle of the day. In the distance, there is a parasailing parachute.

There is something about toes in the sand that is so relaxing.

Bubbles and broken shells in the receding water made interesting patterns.

The colors here would be an interesting inspiration for a quilt, mostly shades of white and grey with a touch of apricot.

Looking back toward the hub of Myrtle Beach where the big hotels are located, it isn’t crowded. Of course, Myrtle Beach proper has its touristy side, with garish shops hawking towels and beachwear, but the northern end of town is more peaceful and relaxing. When you get to the community of North Myrtle Beach, there are free parking lots about every half-mile, and beaches are a lot less crowded.

I found a quaint shopping area, little shops and restaurants on a pier-like setting, called Barefoot Landing.

It was so pretty, with fountains and large pots of flowers. The architecture of the buildings is typical of the beach community.

There were large pots of mixed flowers all over the piers, with many benches to sit and eat or just relax.

I saw this while I was at a stop light. Looking up I was a bit surprised to see King Kong with an airplane!! It was on top of the wax museum, and had to be somewhere close to 40-50 feet high, over the building! I’ve never seen anything like it, so I had to show it to you.

Walking along the beach again in the early evening later in the week, we found a Garden by the Sea. Marigolds and pansies were blooming profusely.

Beautiful stonework retaining walls holding more flower beds. Some had not come into bloom yet.

I know this post is getting long, but there is so much to show you! There were more garden spots with lovely places to sit and enjoy the view, some public and some connected with the resorts.

This garden had wonderful foliage in purple shades.

This little spot had a quaint fountain.

It was so nice to walk in the evenings after dinner. We had a couple of really outstanding meals and I’ll show you those tomorrow.

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During my week in Myrtle Beach, I had to visit the Brookgreen Gardens in Murrells Inlet. The gardens had their foxgloves and snapdragons at peak bloom, just gorgeous! I should probably have split this into two posts, but I have a lot more to show you in the coming days, and more projects in the works, so bear with me for a longer than normal post with some gorgeous flowers and scenic vistas.

I was surprised to learn that the gardens were originally four rice plantations. Purchased when the plantations were going bankrupt by a sculptor, it was turned into a showplace for American sculptors and artists. Currently there are more than 1400 sculptures by 350 artists in the collection. I walked for almost three hours, and only saw a fraction of what was on display. I took over 100 pictures, and cutting that group down to a manageable level to show wasn’t easy. Still, get ready for a picture heavy post!! There are several large reflecting pools and small fountain pools, all surrounded by foxgloves and snapdragons, standing three to four feet tall!

The four running men in the picture above represent the four Muses of Fine Arts, the poet, the painter, the musician and the architect. The sculptures were produced in 1949 to 1954 by Carl Milles. The range of colors in the flowers was just gorgeous.

Here, pink and yellow snapdragons are share the space with white and pink foxgloves.

More are around a round reflecting pool, with more against the wall.

This was on the other side, just stunning!

Another fountain, with more foxgloves. There were literally thousands of them.

Passing through the peacocks at this gate led to more gardens.

Another reflecting pool with a different sculpture, this one of Samson and the Lion.

Further in, going through a tall hedge, this sculpture pond was a hidden gem.

These spotted flowers have so much character. Did you know that our modern heart medication Digitalis originally came from foxgloves? Not in widespread use anymore as there are better, less risky medications now, but part of our history.

I adore white flowers, and these snapdragons were gorgeous to me.

Then, around the next hedge was a whole garden of white foxgloves with dark red spotted throats.

Large open vistas allowed for a nice long walk and the clear cool morning was perfect for getting some exercise.

Large live oaks with typical low country moss hanging from the branches made an arbor over the path.

On the other side of the vista, another garden of creamy snapdragons with light lavender foxgloves.

The tall spires captivated me. The pink foxgloves in the back were over four feet tall.

There were other flowers in bloom there too, but the foxgloves and snapdragons were most prominent. Here, pink rhododendrons bloom in a shady spot.

Lovely large blooms, the bees were enjoying these too.

Here and there were patches of daisies.

And a few tulips were still blooming.

A large meadow was part of the garden walk, going past an open natural pond. Can you see the eyes in the pond looking at me? It was a baby alligator. He was on the bank when I came out of the garden hedge, but slid into the water ahead of some other people. Then turned around to watch us, while he floated in the pond.

He’s here –

Further on was a huge sundial sculpture.

On the waterway, you could take a ride on a plantation boat for a tour. I didn’t have the time to do that too, maybe next time.

On the way out, a last look at one of the inlets. A tree that had fallen during the last hurricane had been cut off, according to the guide. She pointed out the turtles that have claimed it as their daily sunning spot. So cute, lined up on the tree trunk. Can you see them?

Whew, that was a lot of walking! But I thoroughly enjoyed the morning. It was growing fairly hot and humid by the time I decided I had seen enough for one trip. The great thing about this garden is your ticket gets you unlimited access for a week. So you can come and go as you like over several days. I have a lot more pictures of bronze sculptures with more foxgloves and snapdragons, but I’ll stop here.

Picking up from yesterday, the Grand Strand Quilters meeting was so much fun. I really enjoyed making new quilter friends, but had no idea what would happen next. One of the charities the Grand Strand Quilters support is the Quilts of Valor program. I didn’t get this quilter’s name (with the microphone) before the end of the meeting, and her quilt would be very nice for the veterans, but I don’t remember if she said who it was for.

Batting is cut at each meeting for finished tops, here an Anita’s Arrowhead with patriotic borders.

After the meeting, while I was chatting with members, Joan came up to me explaining that she was the QOV coordinator for the group as well as part of the national organization. She wondered if I would be willing to quilt some tops for them. She said they have a backlog of 150 quilt tops ready to be quilted, but a serious lack of longarmers willing to help. I hesitated a moment, knowing that there would be some logistics involved, and I just couldn’t do them by mail. But she already had a plan. It seems that about a third of their members are snowbirds, spending the winter in Myrtle Beach and the summers up north. Some go through my area twice a year. So, if I took some quilts to do, then in six months or so, someone would be coming through to pick them up. Well, then, sure!! Knowing I had a bit of stuff from shopping, I agreed to take 10. Joan ran home, cut batting for 10 quilts, packed them up in 5 large bags, and met me at my hotel (with her charming husband, Jim) to hand them off. They completely filled the back seat of our rented Jeep. I think this will become a regular thing for us! So, I think I may have become an honorary member of the Grand Strand Quilters, at least I’d like to think so. Yes, I’ll share them with all of you as I put them on the frame for quilting around my other projects.

There are two really wonderful quilt stores in the area, and I visited both, along with a Crafter’s mall where one of the vendors had lots of fun fabrics and notions. On Tuesday, I drove to Murrells Inlet to Accent Sewing. What a wonderful store!! There were fun fabrics, lots of notions and thread, classroom space and machines.

I chatted only a little with their longarmer who was busy with a quilt right then, so I didn’t want to bother her too much. All the ladies were so friendly and helpful. Diane helped me find a pebble fabric for my Be My Neighbor quilt to use as the streets. The owner, Sheryl, was so nice and helpful too. It is a bright and colorful store to visit, I wish I could do their mini quilt of the month quilt along, the samples were just joyful!

Then on Wednesday, I visited Quilting on the Beach, where again I met Barb and Anna, two lovely, friendly ladies willing to chat a bit. I spent the most time with Maureen, their longarm quilter as she worked on this beautiful quilt. The piecer, Anne, was there too, getting a lesson in what a longarmer needs. Just look at how perfect all her points are on those triangles! As usual, I picked up a new-to-me, stupidly simple, brilliant idea for dealing with quilt backings that are too small. She uses long straight pins to secure a piece of fabric to the edge, allowing the longarm more space so it doesn’t bump into the clips. As she rolls the quilt, she moves the bit of extra fabric. Why didn’t I ever think of this?

Pretty store, lots of fabrics!! When I mentioned the Be My Neighbor quilt, Barb found another pebble fabric in lighter colors, so I got some of that too. I’ll show you those tomorrow.

Then, down the road a bit was Homespun Crafter’s Mall, with new crafted items and vintage treasures. The fabric vendor had a lot of choices too. I understand this is a relatively new expansion for the vendor. This dealer mall satisfied both my quilter self and my vintage side.

So, that was my quilting adventure in Myrtle Beach. If you missed part one of Quilting on the Grand Strand, click HERE.

Last week, DH had work to do in Myrtle Beach and I decided that I needed some beach time. So I packed a bag and went with him. While he was working, I had a grand time on the Grand Strand! The Grand Strand is composed of a number of small communities along the coast, comprising over 60 miles of uninterrupted beach on the South Carolina Coast. Myrtle Beach is the largest, located roughly in the middle. One of the things I like to do when traveling is visit quilt shops (where I can), and this time was lucky enough to find the Grand Strand Quilters were having a meeting while I was there. I emailed the president, asking if I could visit, and of course as all quilters do she said “Certainly!!”. Thursday morning I arrived as the pre-meeting chat time was getting underway. It didn’t take but a moment for someone to say “Welcome!!” I had met a lovely lady the day before at one of the quilt shops, Leanne, and she was new to the area. We happened to walk in at the same time, so I was familiar with one face. We both were swept up in the group and I didn’t get a chance to talk to her again that morning. There were at least 50 women there, setting up machines, chatting, working on kits for charity quilts, all in a happy buzz of conversation. I chatted with a few here and there, and ended up at a table for the meeting with Barbara, Flo, Blanche, Nancy, Theresa, Sue and Cindi. Here, Blanche was showing her progress on her postage stamp applique quilt, such beautiful handwork! All those tiny pieces were appliqued to the base by hand. She has a few more rows and it will be done.

The meeting got underway, while many of the members worked on hand projects.

They have a microphone and speaker system so every presenter can be clearly heard by everyone.

The quilt show and tell was magnificent, such lovely work!! I wish I could show you all these quilts individually! But I will show you a few.

The room has a stage, so the quilts could easily be seen by the entire room. I didn’t get this quilter’s name as she was gone before I could get to her. But her blue quilt is beautiful.

Sue’s quilt is all HSTs and tiny squares, and is a pattern by Bonnie Hunter. I was so impressed with the number of bits in this one, and love her colors. Look at her scrappy border! You know I love scrappy.

Adrene’s quilt was made from a collection of African inspired prints she had collected that went beautifully with the panel found later.

Carole’s quilt (yes she spells her name like I do!) is for charity. She did a diagonal backing to mirror the string quilt blocks on the front. Very creative idea!

I had such a great time that morning!! Nancy and Theresa were just delightful to chat with.

Bonnie’s string quilt was so colorful!

Blanche had a wall hanging for show and tell.

Cindi’s lovely string quilt had a neat black border that set off the colors nicely.

This guild does an impressive amount of charity quilting, and they truly have it organized well. They meet weekly, so some sewing on the charity projects gets done every week. Kits are made with tops, backing and batting for members to take home to quilt, or to be sent to a longarm volunteer.

Joanne and Sandy (at the machines) are working on caps for children in chemo with another member who is working on a small quilt project.

In the back of the room, long tables were set up end to end to cut batting for kits.

Enjoying the quilts, chatting with all these friendly ladies, sharing ideas and inspiration, there is too much to show you in one post. So, stay tuned for the rest of the story tomorrow, and we’ll go shopping! Now published, click HERE to see Part 2!

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